Lubrication



No 1, 1938.- B 2,134,597

LUBRICAIION Original Filed Dec. 2. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Afforngys.

Patented Nov. 1, 1938 UNITED STATES LUBRICATION Joseph Bijur, deceased, late of New York, N. Y., by George Bijur, New York, N. Y., executor, assignor toAuto Research Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Original application December 2, .1922, Serial No.

604,464. Divided and this application December 26, 1933, Serial No. 703,940

13 Claims.

The present invention relates to lubricating installations and more particularly to oil lubrication of some or all of the bearings of the chassis of a motor vehicle or other mechanism.

This application is a division of prior application 604,464, filed Dec. 2, 1922 (Patent 1,940,784).

An object of the invention is to provide for a machine or system of machines and more particularly for a motor vehicle chassis, a simple and reliable installation, devoid of sensitive or delicate parts and operable substantially without effort for satisfactorily lubricating all or a substantial number of the bearings thereof, Without the need for inspection of or manual access to said bearings.

Among other objects of the invention are, to provide an installation of the above type by which the lubrication is eiiected by operation at one or more conveniently accessible control stations, without the use of pressure pumps or outlet valves for the ends of the oil lines, or the need for pressure-tight lines, and in which the oil will pass reliably to the bearings without clogging, even after prolonged use. 7

Another object is to provide a lubricating installation, the use of which shall not require the exercise of any selective discretion, but in which, as the result of a simple manipulation, correct and suflicient lubrication is effected at each of the bearings, whether tight or loose and without excessive overflow.

The lubricating installation includes, a central control or charging station, filled by a single operation and associated with means to automatically subdivide the charge to feed to each of various bearings, a predetermined quantity of oil by drainage, preferably through lines open at their ends. The charging station may supply measured charges to sub-stations at various parts of the vehicle, each of the sub-stations supplying measured quantities to a plurality of bearings connected thereto. The drainage may be efiected by gravity head between the charging station and the bearings, the feed to the bearing or bearings at the highest elevation being effected by the aid of a wick or wicks, if desired,'or required.

The central or charging station may be a compartment receptacle associated with a main reservoir of oil, the separate compartments being normally in communication therewith and being discharged by a pneumatic operation. The charging station may include a substantially closed receptacle having a plurality of compartments in the interior thereof, each draining to one of the sub-stations or direct t btarings,

special means being provided to transport lubricant from a central reservoir to the charging station to completely fill the compartments therein, an overflow passage being provided to return to the main reservoir, the excess lubricant be yond that required to fill the compartments. This invention contemplates various alternative means for conveying lubricant from the main reservoir to the measuring compartments in the embodiment last referred to, among which are elevation through suction or pressure from the engine.

The sub-stations are preferably substantially sealed but suitably vented compartment boxes with which the draining conduits communicate,

said boxes having compartments, one connected to each of the bearings, an oil spreading pad over the compartments, intercepting the oil admitted to the sub-station, to assure correct distribution thereof to the compartments therein.

The passage of the lubricant charge through the line may be facilitated by the application of pneumatic or gas pressure, either from the engine exhaust or from a special air or gas bottle. more particularly, where the oil is viscous as in cold weather, or where pipe lines of extraordinarily small bore are used. The pneumatic agent may be used as a substitute for the gravity head, and the charging station may accordingly be at an elevation lower than all or many of the bearings.

It is preferred to provide means for preventing the application of pneumatic pressure directly to the bearings, and to this end the pneumatic pressure is vented in advance of the bearings, the lubricant being intercepted for drainage to the bearings, substantially free from pneumatic pressure.

The above and other features of this invention may be more fully understood from the accompanying drawings in which are shown various possible embodiments of the several features of the invention.

In the figures:-

Fig. 1 shows an elevation of a vehicle chassis, with the elements of a lubricating installation diagrammatically indicated.

Fig. 2 is a view in longitudinal cross-section of a preferred form of collecting box used in the embodiment of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the charging station of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a view in longitudinal cross-section taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a view partly diagrammatic of an 'subestations.

alternative means for urging measured charges of lubricant toward the bearings, and;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6--6 of Fig. 5.

General layout-Fig. 1

The diagrammatic layout of Fig. 1 shows the chassis of a conventional automobile including the. chassis frame having a front axle l8 and rear' axle ll, springs I2 connecting said axles to said chassis frame 9, each spring being connected at charging station may include separate measuring compartments, (five being indicated diagrammatically' in Fig. 3) connected by conduits to supply sub-stations, or distributing boxes, at the latter of which the oil is automatically subdivided Ior passage to bearings supplied there- 'from, although some or all of the bearings may be supplied direct from the charging station.

Pneumatic propulsion 01 blast system Where long conduit pipes are used, and particularly where such pipes are of very small diameter or where relatively viscous oil is employed, and especially for operation in cold weather, it is desirable to assist the gravity flow of the charges of lubricant to the sub-station or toward the bearings, bythe application of a .blast of air or gas, generically defined hereafter as a pneumatic agent. This arrangement is also suitable in lieu of gravity feed where the -main supply or charging station is, at an elevationlower than that of the sub-stations or bearings.

l An installation of the latter. type is shown in Fig. 1 in which there is provided a main charging station C below the floor board of the vehicle for supplying lubricant to sub-stations, in this case,

Ifive in number, mounted as at 369 and 318 respectively near the front and rear of each channel frame. The lubricant drains from one compartment of sub-station 369 through conduit 31l ;to the adjacent spring shackle, from another compartment through conduit 312 to the spring bolt and a flexible conduit 313, supplies the king ,pin 26., The rear sub-station 318 similarly, by conduits 314 and 315 respectively, supplies the associated spring shackle and bolt, and a flexible conduit 316 shown in this embodiment as brid ing loosely to the rear axle supplies the brake links. (not shown) The method of operation broadly consists in measuring separate charges of lubricant for the various collecting boxes or bearings and applying a blast of gas or air thereto, to propel it to said If the pneumatic agent were allowed to blow the lubricant all the way into the hearing, it might in blowing off or venting, eject from, the bearing a substantial fraction of the lubricant delivered thereby. It is accordingly, a specific feature of the present method to prevent the pneumatic agent 'from exerting any effect beyond the collecting or sub-stations, the blast serving merely to propel the lubricant to the substationsfrom which the discharge to the bearings takes place by drainage either by gravity or by wick feed. In the preferred application, the lubricant is intercepted by the sub or collecting stations and the air or gas is allowed to escape therefrom into the open air.

For this purpose, the sub or collecting stations are preferably of the special construction shown in Fig. 2 comprising a vessel 311 closed by a cover 318 and provided at its bottom with the measuring compartments 319, 319, 319 of predetermined capacities covered by the combined filtering and spreading pad 388. Each compartment has a drainingnipple 38!, 381, 381 through which the proportioned quantity of lubricant passes therefrom to the corresponding bearing. Above the distributing pad, there is provided a horizontal partition 382 resting on ledges 383 at the side walls of the vessel and supporting a series of vertical partitions 384, 384 etc. defining a plurality of chambers 385', 385 etc. each partition provided with a small central aperture 386. Within each chamber 385 is provided a vertical oil intercepting pad 381', 381 etc. extending through a corresponding aperture in partition 382 and supported at its bottom in a corresponding clip 388, horizontal cross rods 389 maintaining said pads 381 against displacement. Guide plates 398 are' supported on pins as at 39l within the vessel between' the ledge 383 and the spreading pad 388 and serve as runways for delivering the lubricant near the middle of pad v388.

An intake pipe 392 is disposed in one of the side walls of the collecting receptacle near the central axis of the pads 381 and a pipe 393 392, a portion of the lubricant being absorbed by the pad 381 while the gas or air charged with v.the residue of lubricant passes through and .around the edges of pad 381 and is forced through aperture 386 in partition 384, the operation being repeated at pads 381 'etc. until the -last pad has abstracted allof the small residue of lubricant, which passed the preceding pad, the

pressure agent substantially free from lubricant being then vented through pipe 393. The lubricant on the various pads 381 drips therefrom and.

is guided by the plates 390 for delivery to the spreading pad 388 into-the compartments 319 .from which it drains.

In Figs. 3 and 4, there is provided a station indicated diagrammatically at C Fig. 1, at which the predetermined chargesare first measured and the blast thereupon applied to propel it to the various collecting or distributing stations already described. The valve plunger 394 is provided with a transverse aperture 395, communicating with the upper end of the measuring cavity 395,

which is brought into registry with a pressure air inlet tube 391 when the plunger is depressed, said inlet tube being connected to a bottle charged with air or gas orto' the engine exhaust. The valve 398 is of disk form with a yielding nonsticking facing 399 -for coaction with the annular valve seat 488, to efiect a particularly tight seal, preventing leakage. In this embodimenathe return spring 48! is above the cover of the reservoir, confined between gland 482 and the top of hood 483, the latter serving both as the operating handle and as a guard to prevent dirt falling upon the gland.

In operation, as the plunger is depressed, a

previously measured charge in the cavity 396 is allowed to escape to the line and the'source of gas pressure being thereupon applied by the automatic registry of duct 395 with inlet duct 391, the lubricant is propelled by the blast of air or gas to the'sub-staticn 360 or 310 connected to the cavity 396. The lubricant is collected in the substation and the pneumatic agent vented by the operation already set forth in the description of- Fig. 2, the lubricant draining from the sub-station to the bearings free from pressure.

In Figs. 5 and 6 is shown an alternative arrangement for propelling measured quantities of lubricant by a blast. In this arrangement, the charging station is shown at C to be applied at an elevation preferably lower than that of the collecting station. The charging station has a plurality of measuring compartments 404 and is provided with a dome-shaped cover 405 connected to the main reservoir T by piping 400 within which is a check valve 401. The charging station is, at an elevation lower than that of the lubricant in main tank T, so that lubricant normally fills said station as well as thedome thereof, since as shown in the drawings, the station is normally vented to the airthrough two-way valve 488. Valve 4 08 may be operated to connect the duct 409 from the measuring station to the source (not shown) of air or gas, whereupon. the pneumatic agent will blow through a dust separator M0 of lecting stations of the type shown in Fig. 40,

where the lubricant is automatically sub-divided for drainage free from pressure to the various bearings inthe manner already described. The lubricant content of dome 405 will obviously be distributed to the compartments therebelow in proportions corresponding to the base areas thereof, so that the charge to each collecting station will be somewhat in excess of the volume of the compartment 406. The volumes of the elements are preferably so proportioned that the discharge from any compartment 404 including the allotment thereto from dome 405 will be sufficient to charge the corresponding collecting box.

'By the expression power source, utilized in the specification and claims, there is meant a conduit or reservoir or other means from which or by which gas pressures, different from atmospheric, may be derived to cause the flow of lubricant. It will be noted that in Figs. 1 to 6 of the present application, which correspond respectively to Figs. 39 to 44 of the parent application, Ser. No. 604,404, Patent No. 1,940,784, that the lubricant is permitted to flow from a central reservoir or supply to a plurality of measuring chambers or compartments adjacent the power source. From these chambers which measure or meter the lubricant there are a plurality of tubing lines leading to sub-metering or measuring stations adjacent the bearings. The lubricant is propelled from the main metering station tothe sub-metering station by pneumatic pressure and feeds from the sub-station to the bearings by gravity. Thus there is shown and disclosed a system in which the main metering station receives lubricant by gravity and in which the sub-metering station distributes lubricant by gravity, while the lubricant is transferred from the main station to the sub-station by pneumatic pressure.

' What is claimed is:-

1. A centralized lubricating installation for supplying the spaced bearings of a mechanism to be lubricated, said installation comprising a piping system having a plurality of tubing lines, a central lubricant supply feeding lubricant to said system, a power source for causing propulsion of the lubricant from said supply under pressure through said lines and metering means means at the bearings supplying the bearings by.

gravity. i

2. A centralized lubricating installation for supplying'the spaced'bearings of i a mechanism to be lubricated, said installation comprising a piping system having a plurality of tubing lines leading to the spaced bearings to be lubricated, a central lubricant supply feeding lubricant to said system, a power source for causing propulsion of the lubricant from said supply under pressure through said lines and metering means for proportioning the lubricant among said tubing lines and said bearings located at said supply and at said bearings, said means including a plurality of measuring means, said supply feeding the measuring means at the supply by gravity and said power source forcing lubricant from the measur ing means at the supply to the measuring means at the bearings through said tubing lines and said measuring means at the bearings feeding the bearings by gravity.

3. A centralized lubricating installation for supplying the spaced bearings of a mechanism to be lubricated, said installation comprising a pip ing system having a plurality of tubing lines leading to the spaced bearings to be lubricated, a central lubricant supply feeding lubricant to said system, a power source for causing propulsion of i the lubricant from said supply under pressure through said lines and metering means for proportioning the lubricant among said tubing lines and bearings, said means including a plurality of chambers of predetermined capacity respectively located at said supply and said bearings, the former being filled from said supply and supplying the latter through said tubing lines and the latter being supplied from said tubing lines and feeding said bearings by gravity and said power source supplying pneumatic pressure to said arrangement to force lubricant from the former chambers into said latter chambers.

4. In a centralized lubricating installation, in combination, bearings, a central source of lubricant removed from the bearings, a distributor having compartments adjacent the bearings, separate conduits connecting each of the compartments to a corresponding bearing, a conduit connecting said source to said distributor, means for applying pneumatic pressure to lubricant at said source for aiding in the propulsion thereof to said distributor and venting means at said distributor to vent said pneumatic pressure and prevent it from being supplied to the bearings.

5. In a remote control lubricating system, in combination, bearings, a measuring compartment reservoir, a central collecting vessel in the vicinity of said bearings and substantially removed from the reservoir, pneumatic means for propelling the measured charge to said collecting vessel, said collecting vessel having means for intercepting the lubricant and venting the propelling agent.

6. In a remote control lubricating system, in combination, bearings, a central measuring reservoir, a remote collecting vessel having compartments in the bottom thereof and in the vicinity of said bearings, a conduit connecting said measuring reservoir to said collecting vessel, pneumatic means for propelling the measured charge to said collecting vessel, said vessel having venting means and dividing means for distributing the lubricant to the compartments thereof in proportions corresponding to the base areas thereof and then to the bearings by gravity.

7. In a centrahzed lubricating installation, in

' combination, a central reservoir, a plurality of measuring chambers in the vicinity thereof and said measuring chambers to propel it to the associated collecting boxes, means to prevent the application of the propelling agent to the main body of lubricant in the reservoir, said collecting boxes having means for intercepting the lubricant and venting the pneumatic agent to permit gravity fiow to the bearings.

8. In a lubricating system, in combination, a bearing, a source of lubricant, a source of pneumatic pressure, a conduit connecting said lubricant source to said bearing, means for applying pressure from said pneumatic source to lubricant from said first source to propel said lubricant through said conduit to said bearing, and an oilseparating member in the conduit in advance of the bearing, said member comprising oil-absorbing means by which the oil is separated from the propelling agent, and venting means for allowing escape of said agent, and means conveying the separated lubricant to the bearing.

9. In a lubricating system, in combination, an oil separator comprising a vessel, oil-absorbing pads therein, perforated partitions between successive pads, an inlet for lubricant and pneumatic propelling agent at one side of said pads, an outlet for the propelling agent at the opposite side of said pads, and outlet means for. the collected lubricant.

10. In a lubricating system, in combination, a box having a plurality of measuring compartments at the bottom thereof, a plurality of oilabsorbing pads extending vertically near the upper end of said chamber, partitions between successive pads having small perforations, an intake passage at one side of said boxfor admission of oil and air under pressure, an outlet at the opposite side for the escape of air after the oil has been separated therefrom by said pads, and means interposed between said pads and said measuring compartments to sub-divide the lubricant therefrom in proportions approximating the relative base areas of the compartments.

11. In a centralized lubricating installation for a plurality of spaced and distributed bearings, a central lubricant reservoir, a lubricant propulsion agency, lubricant distributing means located adjacent said reservoir and said agency, lubricant sub-distributing means located adjacent said bearings, a conduit system connecting said reservoir to said distributing means, said distributing means to said sub-distributing means, and said sub-distributing means to said bearings, said lubricant being moved from said distributing means to said sub-distributing means by said agency.

12. The installation of claim 11 in which said agency is a source of pneumatic pressure.

13. The installation of claim 11 in which the lubricant passes from said reservoir to said distributing means and from said sub-distributing means to said bearings by gravity, said reservoir and said distributing means both being vented.

GEORGE BIJUR, Executor of the Estate of Joseph Bia'ur, deceased. 

